“It’s time to go’ State wrestling meet extra special for Cunningham siblings, ailing Plymouth coach
MANSFIELD – For one of Caleb Cunningham’s biggest fans, the timing of this weekend’s state wrestling tournament couldn’t be better.
Ditto for Plymouth coach Jeremiah Balkin.
Crestview grad Caden Cunningham is home for spring break from Walsh University, which means he’ll be in Columbus to watch his younger brother complete his quest for a Division III state heavyweight championship.
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Caden could be a good luck charm for baby bro. One of the few times he’s seen Caleb wrestle this season was in the finals of the J.C. Gorman Invitational in early January. That might have been Caleb’s best match of the season. Ranked No. 3 at the time, he beat Galion’s Alex Griffith, ranked No. 2 in DII, 10-0 for the 285-pound title.
Caleb jumped to No. 1 in the state rankings after that win and the Crestview senior has stayed there ever since.
“It works out perfectly,” Caden said of spring break coming at the right time. “I haven’t been to many of his matches this year, so I knew I wanted to be at the big one.
“I just made it to the Gorman in time to see that. Beating somebody ranked higher than you, who is in a bigger division, was impressive.”
Balkin gets green light to coach at state
Plymouth has two state qualifiers in senior Cameron Wagers (120) and junior Noah Robinson (215), giving Balkin five in the last three years. But the arrival of this year’s tournament, and his chance to be inside the Schottenstein Center, means even more to Balkin after he spent most of last week in the hospital.
It was discovered that he needs a new aortic valve due to a genetic disorder. A bypass and open heart surgery are in his near future. He was released from the hospital last Saturday, the same day Wagers, 44-6, and Robinson, 45-7, clinched their berths at state with fourth-place finishes at the Rossford district meet.
“They’re pretty much going to roto-rooter my whole heart eventually,” Balkin said. “I get to be in the (coach’s) chair (at state), but I’ve got to be calm. That’s what the cardiologist said.”
Balkin placed third at state as a Mapleton heavyweight in 1996 and has shared that experience with his two first-time qualifiers.
“Don’t take anything for granted and leave it all on the mat,” he said. “This year and previous years I’ve talked about my state experience and just how you can’t get too nervous over the crowd. Go out there and wrestle your match and pretend you’re in the wrestling room (at school). Leave it all out there.”
‘Rankings mean nothing’
Cunningham, 39-3, is the latest in a long line of great Crestview heavyweights and he wore the singlets of two of them – state runner-up Clint Endicott and former No. 1 Caden Hill – while competing last week at districts.
Hill was an overwhelming favorite, like Cunningham, to win a state title in 2020. But he never got a chance to complete that journey because the pandemic forced the cancellation of the tournament.
He recently returned home after serving six months in Cuba for the Marines and has been drilling with Cunningham the last three weeks.
“The big thing (Hill) helps with is just keeping Caleb’s head on straight,” said Steve Haverdill, who was head coach for both until stepping back to be Nate Godsey’s assistant this season. “And he’s not allowing Caleb to do whatever he wants.
“He’s forcing him to set (shots) up the right way, making sure his technique is on par. When you get to this level you can’t have any sloppiness.”
Hill doesn’t want his protege thinking about his No. 1 ranking.
“We’re two No. 1’s in the room. That’s correct,” Hill said. “But at the same time, I’m not No. 1 and he’s not either until you get to the top of the podium. I feel safe to say he doesn’t feel like he’s No. 1 until he’s on top of the podium.
“Rankings are just projections. My junior year I was ranked fourth in the state and couldn’t get out of districts. The rankings mean nothing.”
Cunningham will be joined at state by surprise freshman Qwintin Howard (30-19 at 126) and 155-pounder Naomi Gearheart, the first regional champ and first girls state qualifier in Crestview history. This is the second year the OHSAA has sanctioned a girls tournament, which runs simultaneously with the boys.
Two brothers, two state titles?
People tend to forget Cunningham is a relative neophyte when it comes to competing as a heavyweight – he was a 215-pounder last year – and in terms of mat time, period. Because he’s fought injuries the past couple of years, he didn’t even get to career victory No. 100 until this year’s Firelands Conference meet.
“Injuries killed me on wins, for sure,” he said. “But I feel good now. This is it. It’s time to go.”
If he wins a title, it will mark the second time in nine months a Cunningham sibling reached the top of the state podium. Caden was part of Crestview’s champion 4x400 meter relay team last spring.
“That would be pretty cool; he’s worked hard for it,” Caden said of his brother. “When I was out there at track practice, he was always at wrestling practice, even after wrestling season was over.”
They never talked about accomplishing such a feat when they were growing up.
“I never thought I would run track,” Caden said. “With us, it was always about football, winning state titles in that.”
That dream of winning a football championship together is still alive because Caleb committed on National Signing Day to Walsh, where he will join Caden, a safety for the Cavaliers. They were both first team All-Ohio players for Crestview.
“The only down side in college,” said Caden, who gives up four inches and 80 pounds to Caleb, “is that he’s playing offense (on the line), so I’ll have to go against him in practice … maybe on a screen or something.”
For now Caden’s energy is focused on emotionally boosting Caleb to the top rung of the awards podium. He wants him to feel what he felt last spring.
“To be honest, it felt like everything we did (as a relay team) finally paid off, all those tough runs, all those hard practices … it was all worth something,” Caden said. “At that point, you know you’re the best in the state. You know nobody is better than you in that moment. It’s pretty surreal.”
This article originally appeared on Mansfield News Journal: State wrestling meet special for Cunningham siblings, ailing Plymouth coach
